SHE RAN, HE HUNTED

Lyra's POV 

The moon is too bright tonight.

Its pale light spills across the forest, washing over the pines and trails until nowhere is dark. Every branch casts long shadows on the ground. The night is beautiful, but only wolves know the danger it holds.

I feel it in my teeth.

A dull ache has settled into my jaw. It creeps behind my eyes until I can't ignore it. My pulse won't steady. Every instinct tells me I should have turned back hours ago. The full moon always stirs something wild in wolves. Tonight, it feels like the whole forest is holding its breath.

On a night like this, every wolf within fifty miles will be restless. Hungry. Alert.

And I'm stupid enough to walk straight into their territory.

North Ridge land.

Kael Varga's land.

For a second, I let myself think of the man I'm really running from. The one who smiled at me like I was already his, the one my father shook hands with over a map of pack borders. If he finds me before I find somewhere to disappear, none of this will matter. Getting caught by strangers is still better than getting found by him.

I push the thought down and keep walking.

I keep my head low as I come up to the gate, matching the calm pace of someone who belongs here. Two guards stand in the moonlight. Their eyes lock onto me the second I come into view.

They're already looking at me like I smell wrong.

Which I do.

I scrubbed myself with pine needles, crushed herbs, and the cheapest soap I could find, until my skin felt raw. It took almost an hour to bury my real scent. I prayed it would be enough.

Now I'm not so sure.

"Where are you headed?" one of them asks.

His voice is casual, but his eyes never leave my face.

"Just passing through," I say. I force my voice to stay steady, swallowing the fear climbing up my throat. "Got lost. Phone's dead."

The second guard glances at the first. Neither of them looks convinced.

The first guard steps away from the gate and closes the distance between us. His boots crunch on the gravel as he stops a few feet away.

Then he breathes in slowly. Deliberately.

My heart slams against my ribs.

The pine. The soap. The herbs. None of it has fooled him.

I see it the second his face changes. That's all I need.

I spin and bolt. Behind me, the night breaks into turmoil.

"Stop her!"

Orders ring through the trees. Bones crack as wolves begin to shift. Paws slam into the ground, tearing through the earth. Claws dig into the dirt as the sound grows louder by the second.

Run. Just run.

I throw myself between the trees. My boots slide over roots and loose stones. Low branches whip my arms and face, leaving sharp stings behind, but I keep moving.

I know these woods aren't on my side.

Every twisted root threatens to trip me. Every branch seems to reach for my clothes and drag me back. The forest belongs to the North Ridge Pack. I don't.

Stopping isn't an option. Stopping means chains. Chains mean waking up in a cell beneath the Alpha's house.

And everyone knows what Kael Varga does to strays.

"Stop running."

His voice cuts through the trees, calm and easy. Like he isn't even chasing me.

"You're just making me work for it."

I don't answer. I can't spare the breath.

My lungs burn as I push harder, pain shooting through my legs with every step. Cold air scrapes my throat, but I won't slow down. If I stop now, I'll never get another chance.

The trees open up. The ground gives way to empty space. A cliff.

Far below, dark water crashes against jagged rocks, the sound swallowed by the wind. Moonlight dances across the surface, turning it into a sheet of silver hiding a deadly fall.

I dig my heels into the loose earth. I skid to a stop, pebbles tumbling over the edge before disappearing into the dark.

Slowly, I turn around.

He's already there.

No shirt. Sweat glistens on his chest and shoulders, as if the chase had been nothing more than a warm-up. His golden eyes glow in the moonlight, cutting through the dark. His hands flex at his sides, claws barely visible at his fingertips.

He hasn't even fully shifted. And he still looks like he could break me in half without trying.

Kael tilts his head, his eyes moving over me slowly, like he's studying me.

"You picked a bad night to trespass," he says.

His voice is steady, almost conversational, which somehow makes it worse.

I force myself to meet his eyes.

"Then let me go," I shoot back, fighting to keep the fear out of my voice. "And I'll be gone by morning."

For a moment, silence sits between us.

Then he laughs.

"I don't let things go, Lyra."

My stomach drops. Every muscle in my body goes stiff.

I never told him my name.

A chill crawls down my spine as questions rush through my mind.

Kael's nose flares. He draws in a slow breath, his eyes never leaving mine.

"You smell like fear," he says quietly.

Another breath.

"And lies."

His face hardens, just slightly.

"And something I should know."

A chorus of howls echoes through the forest. His pack is closing in.

Kael takes one step forward.

"Come with me," he says. "We'll talk. Quietly."

My eyes dart from him to the forest, then to the cliff behind me. Neither offers freedom. But one means a cage. I won't choose it.

Without another word, I turn and run into the trees.

For a moment, the forest is silent.

Then a wild, inhuman roar tears through the night.

The hunt is on.